Government | Friday 15 April, 2016 7:16 am |

Saudi and Turkish officials on Wednesday explored the idea of joint trade and commercial centers to increase the volume of trade between the two countries.

The idea of the centers was proposed by Turkish Minister of Customs and Trade Bulent Tvenkja during a meeting with Minister of Commerce and Industry Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, who accompanied Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman on his official visit to Turkey. 
In a statement to reporters, Tvenkja said the establishment of these centers would raise the volume of trade between the two countries, while Al-Rabiah said the Kingdom was interested in further developing trade relations with Turkey and dubbed the idea “a good opportunity” to do so.
Al-Rabiah said the move comes as part of the ministry’s endeavor to establish high-quality trade, fight counterfeit and fake goods and facilitate trade between the two countries, noting that the ministry will fully examine the Turkish proposal.
Observers note that the proposed commercial centers will be different from free zones, where products from both sides will be offered with some tax breaks. Saudi Arabia would have the possibility of selling goods to Europe via Turkey, and Turkey would be able to sell its goods to the Middle East via Saudi Arabia.
The visit of King Salman to Turkey received considerable media attention with newspapers and other media outlets saying the visit marked a positive shift in bilateral relations, particularly in the light of international and regional circumstances. 
Chairman of Star newspaper, Noah Olberak, said in a statement that the visit of King Salman and his accompanying business delegation was particularly important in view of the excellent relations at various levels between the two countries and would elevate them. 
Economist Sadah Yilmaz said the visit would boost economic relations, promote investment and create new business opportunities. He said there would be a flurry of investments, especially by the Saudi side, in the near future.
“The visit of King Salman is the culmination of the previous meetings between the two countries, and emphasizes the depth of the historical relations between them,” he said.